Laevium: The Cerulean Airship - Book One by Ruxandra Tarca

Author:Ruxandra Tarca [Tarca, Ruxandra]
Language: eng
Format: epub

10

The downpour had stopped, yet the clouds still loomed thick and grey over the rugged hills, as daylight slowly faded into a bleak dusk. In the distance, green patches of bushes resembled small dark shadows spread across a colourless landscape.

It felt miles away from the civilised world. A train station in the middle of nowhere for three neighbouring towns stood as the only visible sign of technology. Barren land, unwelcoming hills, and mucky trails shaped the surroundings.

Ivy and Rowena had retired for the evening, too tired to question Jasper’s decision to go to nearby Glenbuck. To secure the mine gas they needed for their experiment, he’d said. They didn’t need to know his ulterior motives. Over the casual dinner conversation, Mrs Cormack, the housekeeper, had provided plenty of information. Which he intended to put to good use.

“I reckon many things have changed since the Blackwells used to work here, ain’t it so?” Jasper had asked with an innocent smile while stuffing his face with kidney pie. “Three years is quite a long time.”

“Some did, some did not,” the housekeeper said. “The lads in the colliery still drink their minds at the Broken Wagon. But strange things started happening two or three years ago. They are mining and delivering coal all over England. Yet, my husband saw with ‘is own two eyes carts full of mine gas tanks leaving in the dead of night once in a few months. Where and why – nobody can tell. That McAvery is up to no good. Always doing shady business and picking at people.”

“Who is that?” Jasper asked, seemingly to keep the conversation going.

“The colliery overseer. Does a good job, but Shane Gilford – the owner – tries to keep him at a distance. No wonder, since McAvery would sell ‘is mother for a few coins. There is some bad blood between them as of late.”

Jasper didn’t believe in coincidences, much less when they involved transporting mine gas illegally around the time of The Golden Griffin incident.

“Another change is that nobody ever comes to these villages anymore,” Mrs Cormack said, with a trace of sadness in her voice. “When Mrs Octavia and Mr Chalford lived here – God rest their souls – quite a few people from London used to cross our doorstep. I still keep the record of those visits.”

“The record of those visits?” Ivy asked, with her fork in mid-air and a baffled expression on her face. “You were keeping a record of my parents’ guests? Why?”

“Oh, but your parents requested it, Miss Ivy. You weren’t in England, so I had no idea where to send the ledger after their death. I brought it with me today. I reckon you want to see who their friends were, ain’t it so?”

Jasper didn’t find anything amiss in the ledger. Ivy’s parents were among the most famous scientists in England. A lot of influential people came to check how they were faring and how their experiments were going.

Most visits were from Benedict Quimby – which was only natural since he was the Senior Lord of the Engineers Order and their main sponsor.

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